Contract with HAL for additional 97 Tejas jets by year-end: IAF Chief

Tribune News Service

Ajay Banerjee

New Delhi, October 3

Looking to add more fighter jets, Indian Air Force (IAF) Chief Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari on Tuesday said the contract for 97 additional Tejas Mark-1A is expected to be signed this year.

The deal will cost around Rs 1.15 lakh crore, the IAF Chief said while answering queries at the annual press conference ahead of the Air Force Day on October 8. The IAF is going to procure 97 more Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas Mark-1A fighter jets in addition to 83 such aircraft ordered by the Ministry of Defence (MoD) in February 2021 under a Rs 48,000 crore order to public sector giant Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). “We will sign contract with the HAL and they may further allocate work to private sector,” said the IAF Chief. The 97 aircraft were not in lieu of any existing projections of procuring the Tejas Mark-2 or any other jet, he clarified. Asked whether or not these 97 aircraft would have any improvement over already ordered 83 jets, the IAF Chief said changes in technology would be catered to.

The prototype of the ‘Mark-1A’ version is already flying. A series of validations are being done and deliveries are scheduled to commence from February next year, the HAL has announced in the past. Asked about the pending supply of S-400 air defence regiments from Russia, the IAF Chief said: “Three (of the five) were supplied. The Russia-Ukraine conflict led to a delay. We are hopeful of getting the remaining two in a year.”

Listing out future plans, Air Chief Marshal Chaudhari said there were looking at 66 more light combat helicopters (LCHs) and 40 training planes, besides upgrade of 84 Sukhoi 30 MKI jets at a cost of Rs 60,000 crore.

Asked whether there was a requirement for 42 fighter jet squadrons mandated to tackle a collusive China-Pakistan threat in the changing war fighting scenario, the IAF Chief said “we will need the numbers”. He added the Soviet-origin MiG-21 fighter jets were being phased out by early 2025.

On the wider strategic interests, he said: “The Indo-Pacific region is the new economic and strategic centre of gravity of the world and offers us both challenges and opportunities.” Separately, work is in progress to develop capabilities such as manned-unmanned teaming and High Altitude Pseudo Satellites.

LAC deployment to stay

The IAF will remain deployed till compete disengagement takes place at friction points along the LAC, says Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari. “Our operational plans are dynamic and change as per developing situation.”

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